Green Coin
The 10th annual GPPN Conference, hosted by the Sciences Po School of Public Affairs, featured students' solution oriented ideas and prototypes to address public policy challenges identified by the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To participate, each GPPN member school carefully selected up to five student teams to present their projects and compete for the GPPN prize. The result: 32 teams from around the world met in Paris to showcase their ideas on how to solve some of the most pressing global challenges of today.
Green Coin is an alternative currency hosted on a digital platform that will be awarded for taking ‘green’ actions, whether it be engaging in local environmental initiatives or participating in environmental education. In the future it will expand to facilitate the exchange of food waste and compost for fresh produce to more directly address waste management. Partnerships with the government and ‘green’ companies will then encourage citizens to use the currency on eco friendly products. The implementation of our project will begin with the creation of the app, points platform and a rewards system with partnerships from interested, eco-friendly companies, and it will draw on social capital and competition to drive its initial user base. We also entertain the possibility of a composting loop that rewards citizens for separating their compostable waste - in particular, we looked at the feasibility of constructing a thermal composting plant in a neighbouring forest of Paris to generate electricity from compost, thus helping to offset some of the cost of such a project.
Meet the team
Alan Wong is currently a sophomore at Harvard College studying Human Developmental and Regenerative Biology. He is also interested in studying different languages and semantics in linguistic theory, and thus plans to complete a secondary in Linguistics. Outside of academics he enjoys teaching, singing in a choir, volunteering and cooking. Hailing from Canada, Alan also enjoys running outdoors and has developed a strong appreciation for temperate rain forest. These connections to nature have imbued him with a staunch commitment to environmentalism, and so he continually searches for ways to improve the environmental impact of an individual’s choices.
Juliana Castrillon is a senior at Harvard College working towards a degree in Neurobiology with a secondary in Computer Science. Following graduation, she plans on taking a gap year before diving into medical school with hopes of becoming a pediatric surgeon. At Harvard, Juliana directs a program that teaches adult immigrants English, serves as a peer counselor, and gives tours for prospective students. A native of Medellín, Colombia and a New Yorker at heart, she takes delight in ascending both the mountains gracing the “City of Eternal Spring” and those far closer, especially during wintry bouts. Her admiration for nature and belief in the importance of individual conservation efforts inspire her everyday actions and larger pursuits.
Léon Faure is a second year student in the interdisciplinary Bachelor program of the Center for research and Interdisciplinary (CRI), called Frontiers of Life Sciences. He studies mainly biology in a research perspective, but also mathematics, computer sciences, chemistry, physics, and even a bit of sociology. He has always been a Parisian, and he is fascinated by world-scale issues, especially in term of human development and its impact. He wants to bring this fascination with his passion for biology, by working in biotechnologies for a better future. Léon believes that the biosourced products can be a game changer in that particular purpose. But he still thinks that nothing is more important than taking part in concrete actions to help the environment. Outside of the school, he likes music, nature, cinema, but also science and technology at the same time. He tries to always be open-minded, with anyone or anything at any moment; and put no barriers to his curiosity.
Lin Sun is a Master student in Sciences Po Paris majoring Economics and Public Policy. Having graduated from Fudan University in China with the bachelor degree of International Politics, Lin has laid a solid foundation in global affairs.
